1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cleaning cover for a golf club. More particularly, the present invention relates to a golf club head cover having a plurality of interiorly disposed abrasive surfaces for cleaning selected portions of a golf club head of dirt and other foreign matter.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
The game of golf is played on an expansive grass surface, referred to as a "course". A golf course is divided into a multiplicity of separate segments, referred to as "holes". Each hole comprises an elongate field of play, referred to as a "fairway" which separates the starting point from the cup. The standard golf course includes eighteen holes, the completion of which, by a golfer, is called a "round".
The equipment required to play a round of golf includes a small, hard, solid, spherical ball and a plurality of different sized clubs. Each club is generally an elongate shaft having a hand grip at one end and a shaped hitting surface at the other end. The game of golf is played by attempting to successfully hit the ball with successive strikes, ultimately causing the ball to fall into a recessed cup disposed at the distal end of the fairway from the starting point. As each successive hit brings the ball closer to the cup, different strength and placements are required of the next hit. It is, therefore common for the golfer to have a variety of different clubs with which to hit the ball in accordance with the appropriate distance and accuracy for that hit. Each hit, called a "stroke", is recorded; the object of the game being to require the fewest strokes to sink the ball in the cup of each hole. Each of the holes of the course is played in sequence, and at the completion of the round, the total number of strokes is computed for each player, therein producing a measurable and comparable score.
It is often the case that a golfer, during the act of hitting the ball with one of the clubs, will simultaneously hit the grassy surface of the course, therein lifting a clump of grass and dirt, called a "divot". This is a correspondingly more likely event according to the speed and strength with which the golfer attempts to hit the ball. After having lifted a divot, however, the head of the club is usually coated with a layer of dirt and grass. This dirt and grass, if not removed prior to the next use, may throw off the balance of the club, or may cause irregularities in the morphology of the hitting surface, or may even fly free of the club during the next swing producing a dispersion of dirt and grass particles into the immediately surrounding area.
There are a variety of devices which are known which comprise both a golf club head covering means and a head polishing surface. U.S. Pat. No. 3,406,419 to Young teaches one such a device. Such devices, however, are suited for removing only the finest particulate matter from the head of the club, not for removing gross debris and dirt. Polishing head covers are, therefore, lacking in the utility to which the present invention is directed.
Devices known in the art for removing the gross foreign matter from the hitting surface of the club include towels, brushes, and hand tools for removing embedded dirt. In particular, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,146,968, 5,297,603, and 5,322,105 to Meek teach a covering for a golf club head comprising a towel section having a plurality of engaging VELCRO strips for securably wrapping the towel about the head of the club. The towel of the Meek references also includes a club head scrubber pad which may be used to clean the head of the club prior to wrapping around the head of the club.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,971,126 and 5,050,655 to Borenstein teach a semi-rigid, flexible plastic cover for a golf club head having a brush and a scraper integrally attached to the external surface of the cover. In using either of the Borenstein devices, a golfer would manually scrape and/or brush the debris from the golf club, using the external means attached to the cover, prior to inserting the club into the cover.
The use of such devices as are described above, to remove the dirt and grass from a golf club head, requires the golfer to directly touch the dirt and grass via an external scrubbing device. If this cleaning is required during the round of golf, the golfer often times must bring a towel or other means for cleaning his hands or risk a variety of undesirable things occurring, e.g., dirtying his clothes, destroying his golfing gloves, or even rendering slippery his grip on the club handle therein heightening the endanger to other players from his subsequent swings.
In addition, there exists a strong sense of pride amongst golfers with respect to the cosmetic appearance of their golfing equipment. This is especially true of their golf bags, clubs, and golf club covers. The devices described above, which incorporate cleaning means with a golf club cover, fail to provide a clean and attractive appearance during or after use as they are covered with the dirt and grass debris which has been removed from the club head.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a golf club head cover which also incorporates a cleaning means for removing dirt and other debris from the head of a golf club which reduces the user's risk of dirtying himself or his equipment, or of losing his grip during his swing as a result of dirty hands.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a golf club head cover and cleaning means which retains a clean and attractive appearance while simultaneously removing dirt and grass from the head of the club.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more fully apparent from the ensuing disclosure and appended claims.